Decision : 6 EXT.COM 3
Revision of the Rules of Procedure of the World Heritage Committee

The World Heritage Committee,

Adopts the Rules of Procedure as revised by the World Heritage Committee and included as Annex II to this document.

Decides that it enter immediately into effect, with the exception of Rule 13.1. and for which the following transition provisions will be used:

At the beginning of its 27th ordinary session (Suzhou, June/July 2003), the World Heritage Committee will elect a Bureau whose term will start at that session until the opening of the 28th ordinary session of the Committee (June 2004);

At the beginning of its 28th ordinary session (June/July 2004), the World Heritage Committee will elect a Bureau whose term will start at that session and will last until the end of the 29th ordinary session (June 2005). Among the members of the Bureau, the Committee will designate a first Chairperson whose six-month mandate will extend from the 28th ordinary session (June 2004) until 31 December 2004, as well as a second Chairperson whose six-month mandate will extend from 1 January 2005 to the end of the 29th ordinary session in June 2005;

New Rule 1 of the Rules of Procedure will enter into force starting from the 29th ordinary session of the Committee (June 2005).

Requests the World Heritage Centre to include a Table of Contents to make the revised Rules of Procedure more user-friendly, and to arrange for the printing and distribution of the revised Rules of Procedure in advance of the 27th session of the World Heritage Committee (Suzhou, China, 29 June -5 July 2003).